Safe Online Selling: How to Sell Your Used Items and Make Some Money!

 Whether you're moving, need some extra cash, or just doing some spring cleaning, try selling your used "stuff" online. There are many different ways to accomplish this task, and some are better than others. However, you will be surprised at how true the old adage "one man's trash is another man's treasure" rings true in these situations.

 If you have things lying around your house that you have not touched/worn/used in over 8 months, get rid of them! 8 months is a very conservative estimate because I'm accounting for winter clothes you may not wear for certain seasons, etc. The point is, don't collect items that you're never going to use again, just because you are too lazy to throw them away or take them to Goodwill. Perhaps a monetary incentive is just the trick to get rid of these items. Here's a list of items that sell particularly well online:

• Clothing and accessories (especially dresses, jewelry and shoes)
• Video game systems and accessories
• Artwork
• Desks
• Books (especially textbooks)
• Cars
• Collectibles

When preparing to sell these items, a few tips to remember are:

1. Make sure they are in good condition

2. Gather any additional information you can about the items, such as a model number, retail price, etc.

3. Consider the shipping costs. If you are selling a large or heavy item, you may only want to advertise locally.

Now that you know what you want to sell, your next task is to decide where to sell it. Here are somy my favorites, followed by a description of when you should use them...and when you shouldn't.

• EBay - EBay is great because most everyone knows about it. I've had good luck selling clothes on EBay. I always try to over-estimate the cost of shipping, just in case, so I don't have to worry about taking money out of my pocket for shipping. For those of you who are newbies, keep in mind that EBay does charge fees for you to post auction sales and when you sell your items. The fees are very nominal, as long as you post well and your item sells.
• Half.com - Associated with EBay, half.com is for books. You rank your books based on their condition, and you can make a lot more money than on a site that gives you a flat rate for your texts. However, keep in mind that they give you a flat rate for shipping compensation, so if you are selling a heavy book, keep that in mind when you are pricing the book. Text books sell best.
• Craigslist - The best part of craigslist is that you can post for free! It's important to use craigslist mainly for local ads. Use it for large items. For instance, if you're getting rid of a couch, craigslist is great because someone else in your city can come see it and be responsible for getting it out of your house. You don't want to sell a couch on Ebay because shipping would be ridiculous to deal with. However, EBay has started a local classifieds section as well, so check that out.
• Facebook Marketplace - Facebook Marketplace is a free app on facebook where you can advertise your items. Once again, it's probably best for local sales. What's neat is that you can see if you have friends in common with the potential buyer and vice versa, making the sale seem a bit less sketchy than trusting any faceless, nameless person wanting to buy something from you on craigslist.
• eBid.com - Haven't tried it myself, but I hear the fees are less than EBay and the interface is similar to ebay. It's worth checking out.

 With online selling, it's difficult to ensure that you're being safe. However, follow these tips to make sure you're following the safest guidelines possible:

• Use PayPal - Using paypal for payments is the easiest way to ensure your financial information is safe. Go to www.paypal.com and follow the easy steps to make an account.
• Over-estimate shipping - Sometimes, if you have an online auction and your item sells for really cheap, you  may not end up making a lot of money....especially if you happened to underestimate shipping costs and end up spending some money out-of-pocket for shipping expenses. Always over-estimate the price a bit. Sellers are agreeing to the shipping price when they purchase the item.
• Don't give too many personal details online
• Think carefully about your return policy - It's important to decide if you want to allow returns. I usually do not. It can be time-consuming and you may end up getting shorted on shipping. However, some people won't buy certain products without the possibility of being able to return them, so you may increase bids/buys by offering a return policy.